B.C. passenger caught smoking weed in a car issued $230 fine

A Saanich man was handed a $230 fine for smoking pot in the passengers seat of a vehicle just hours after cannabis became legal across the country.

Saanich Police Traffic Safety Unit conducted an enforcement campaign at the intersection of Quadra Street and MacKenzie Avenue on Wednesday. It is one of the busiest intersections in the Capital Regional District and one of the highest crash zones on Vancouver Island.

Officers noticed the passenger of a vehicle smoking weed and issued him the ticket. Police talked to the driver of the vehicle and according to a statement, police were satisfied with his ability to operate the vehicle and determined that he had not been affected by his passengers second-hand smoke.

In over two hours police handed out over 50 tickets, including the ticket for smoking pot in the car.

In a statement, Sgt. Jereme Leslie said the officers use standard field sobriety testing when they suspect someone is driving impaired.

“This is nothing new to the Saanich Police Department and around half the officers in Saanich are trained to do this testing.”